The £200m global rail test and innovation hub in South Wales is track for completion by 2025.
The Welsh Government's flagship Global Centre of Rail Excellence (GCRE) project will create a hub for rolling stock and infrastructure testing, innovation, storage and maintenance at the site of the former Nant Helen opencast mine and Onllwyn coal washery at the head of the Dulais and Tawe Valleys.
It will be used by the UK and international rail industry and is expected to create over 100 direct jobs, as well as being a catalyst for creating many more as academic and industrial partners are attracted to the site.
The project is split into three phases with the first phase of the masterplan construction expected to be completed by the middle of 2025:
Phase 1 - The provision of sidings for warm storage of rolling stock from late 2022
Phase 2 - The building of two electrified test loops, one high speed test loop 6.9Km long and a 4.km Infrastructure test loop together with supporting infrastructure and buildings from 2024
Phase 3 - The addition of expanded stabling, maintenance, and commissioning facilities along with research facilities, hotel, and business park in 2025 and ongoing.
A design alliance partnership has now been appointed to begin the detailed design and master planning for the Global Centre of Rail Excellence.
Various tier one contractors including Hirwaun-based Walters Group have been appointed who will work with Atkins to prepare the site for construction.
Arcadis are developing the rail systems design and Mott MacDonald is focused on the net zero energy strategy.
A multidisciplinary team has also been appointed to produce an overarching masterplan for the transformation of the 475-hectare site.
This follows a competitive tender process led by the Design Commission for Wales who are advising on the development of GCRE.
A comprehensive spatial plan will be developed by 5th Studio, Expedition Engineering, Jonathan Cook Landscape Architects, Faithful & Gould, Fairhurst, PRD, Wildwood Ecology and Thirty 4/7.
The plan will incorporate the track testing facility including proposals for the future landscape of the whole site, together with an innovation campus incorporating visitor accommodation.
There will be a public consultation on the design process.
Chair of GCRE Debra Williams said: "This is an ambitious infrastructure project that has the potential to transform the local area with a £200m investment that will put Wales and the UK at the very heart of the 21st Century sustainable transport innovation."
Ms Williams added: "Featuring the UK's first net zero railway, GCRE will include a modern and comprehensive rail testing and innovation facility with capacity and capabilities for rigorous testing of rolling stock, infrastructure, and integrated systems from prototype to implementation."
What is the Global Centre of Rail Excellence (GCRE)?
Established in 2021, the Global Centre of Rail Excellence (GCRE) project is a flagship and wholly-owned subsidiary of the Welsh Government.
The site straddles the local authority areas of Neath Port Talbot and Powys, who are partners in the project with the Welsh Government.
The Welsh Government launched the project with an initial commitment of £50m. The UK Government is expected to confirm a further £10m for research and development along with capital funding of £20m.
An investment prospectus to attract private funding for the project is also in development ready for launch in the autumn of 2022.
GCRE will feature inner and outer looped electrified test tracks including two 25KV electrified test loops, one being a 6.9km high-speed rolling stock track with a maximum speed of 177km/h and the other a 4km 65km/h test track.
Other associated infrastructure will include dual-platform test environment, rolling stock storage, maintenance and sidings, as well as a control centre and space for related R&D, education and training purposes.
The project will also feature the UK's first net zero railway and become the 'one stop shop' for railway innovation, from research and development, through testing, verification and certification, to applied innovation on mainline passenger and freight railways.
There aren't currently any testing facilities in the world that provide both a rail and rolling stock testing solution.
Simon Jones, chief executive of GCRE, said: "GCRE will be unique in Europe and is a major economic development project for Wales. It will support the railway industry to meet the challenges of reducing costs through innovation, improving reliability and passenger experience, and helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. With the support of our key stakeholders including Neath Port Talbot and Powys County Councils, GCRE will play a pivotal role for the public and private sector partners of the railway in the UK and overseas."
Mr Jones added: "Nant Helen was one of the last opencast coal mines in Wales. The development of GCRE will establish a progressive, post-carbon future for the site; providing much needed state-of-the-art rolling stock testing, infrastructure testing, storage and maintenance facilities for the international rail industry and creating jobs for local people."
James Price, chief executive of Transport for Wales said: "Wales and the UK is seeing major investment in key infrastructure projects but there is no fit-for-purpose dynamic testing and certification facility in the UK. GCRE will become a catalyst for the creation of a rail technology hub in Wales; providing a flexible, open-market platform for leading R&D activity that drives and accelerates innovation on our journey to net zero. It’s an exciting step-forward that complements the work that we are doing to make transport in Wales truly sustainable and fit for future generations. Transport for Wales is supporting project delivery and will be among the ‘anchor tenants’ making valuable use of the GCRE facility for decades to come.”
Carole-Anne Davies, chief executive of the Design Commission for Wales, said: "Transforming environments and creating new opportunities takes ambition, critical creative thinking, and clear strategy from inception to delivery. We’re pleased to support the GCRE team who have demonstrated that ambition and made clear with the appointment of the design alliance, that they have no intention of starting with compromise. The design-led team bring an approach and level of experience which aligns perfectly with the scale of this opportunity."
Walters director, Kevin Llewellyn said: “We are delighted to have secured this project, the site for which is just 10 miles from our head office in Hirwaun. As a local employer we are grateful for the recognition and support of GCRE Limited in awarding us this contract. Our unrivalled experience with design partner, Atkins, will see this exciting project set the stage for what will undoubtably be a world class facility.”
